Chickens infect humans
Photo: Reuters
Minister Naveh. Shortage in drugs expected
Photo: Erez Erlichman
East J’lem resident may have bird flu
West Bank village resident admitted with bird flu symptoms to Jerusalem hospital Monday, doctors monitor his condition to determine cause. Health minister claims Sunday Israel well prepared for possible epidemic outbreak
A resident of a Palestinian village located east of Jerusalem arrived at Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital’s emergency room on Monday for fear he contracted the bird flu disease.
Several of the chickens owned by the man died in recent days, hospital sources said. He was placed in an isolated room and is receiving medical treatment, they added.
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No cases of bird flu have been recorded in Israel as of yet; about two months ago a 50-year-old man arrived at a Safed hospital with bird flu-like symptoms, but tests proved he did not contract the disease.
Global concern
International health officials expressed concern last week over the expansion rate of the bird flu virus in Turkey, and the number of confirmed cases of the deadly H5N1 virus. Officials noted that theses two indicators should stand as a warning signal and thoroughly examined.
On the other hand, World Health Organization officials tried to ease concerns and repeated the statement that the outbreak was controllable, and that there were no indications the virus mutated in such way that will allow it to be contracted by humans.
The Israeli Health Ministry reported that "we are closely following the reports from Turkey, but there has been no change in preparations." An infectious diseases expert also estimated that the chance for the virus to be transferred to Israel is low, because the country is not on the bird migrations route these days.
Israel highly prepared
To date, there have been no reports concerning people contracting bird flu and infecting others. At this stage the virus is only contracted from birds to humans, and even this in rare cases.
In a briefing held at the Health Ministry last month, the ministry's Director General Avi Yisraeli estimated years and even generation may pass before the virus mutates and becomes infectious to people, thus causing an epidemic.
In a ceremony to mark his departure from office Sunday, outgoing Health Minister Danny Naveh said that "if God forbid an epidemic breaks out, we will be one of the most prepared countries in the world." However, Naveh pointed to the fact that Israel, as most countries in the world, has a problem of Tamiflu supplies.
